Terminated IIT students seek intervention of President, PM

Terminated for "bad performance", 38 students of IIT Kanpur have taken the issue to president Pratibha Patil and prime minister Manmohan Singh with a plea that the institute reconsider the decision.

The students have written to prime minister and the PMO has forwarded the matter to the HRD ministry for "appropriate action". The Ministry has again forwarded it to the institute for action, a ministry official said.

The 38 students, including 24 from under-graduate and 14 post-graduate levels, were denied admission into fresh semester in January this year for "bad academic record". 

Prof V N Pal, who is an alumni of the institute, has taken the students' issue to President Patil, who is the Visitor of the institute.

Prof Pal met the President on April one at Rashtrapati Bhawan and discussed the issue of termination of students of IIT Kanpur at length. 

He explained the socio-economic condition of these students. Pal demanded reconsideration of the decision of the IIT to terminate the students. 

The students had earlier taken up the matter with HRD minister Kapil Sibal, who, however, did not want to be drawn into the "internal matter of IIT". Sibal had told the students to approach the IIT or move court.

The students are now keeping their fingers crossed.    

"The institute should give chance to improve. But termination will spoil our career," said a student on condition of anonymity.   

The students may be allowed to lodge a formal appeal and explain the circumstances leading to their bad performance. If the authorities are convinced, the decision of termination could be reconsidered, an IIT official said.